Oldboy (2013 film)
| Oldboy | |
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Theatrical release poster
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| Directed by | Spike Lee |
| Produced by |
Roy Lee Doug Davison Nathan Kahane |
| Screenplay by | Mark Protosevich |
| Based on |
Oldboy by Park Chan-wook Im Joon-hyeong Hwang Jo-yoon |
| Starring |
Josh Brolin Elizabeth Olsen Sharlto Copley |
| Music by | Roque Baños |
| Cinematography | Sean Bobbitt |
| Edited by | Barry Alexander Brown |
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Production
company |
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| Distributed by | FilmDistrict |
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Release date
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Running time
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104 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $30 million |
| Box office | $4.9 million |
Oldboy is a 2013 American remake of Park Chan-wook's 2003 South Korean film. Directed by Spike Lee and written by Mark Protosevich, the film stars Josh Brolin, Elizabeth Olsen, and Sharlto Copley.
The film was released on November 27, 2013. It was the last film to be distributed by FilmDistrict, before Focus Features absorbed the company in October 2013. It received a mixed reception from both critics and audiences, with praise towards the acting and visual style, but criticism for the comparisons to the original and adding nothing new to the film. The film was a box office bomb, being one of Lee's worst-performing films of his directing career.
In 1993, alcoholic advertising executive Joe Doucett (Josh Brolin) goes on a drinking spree after ruining an important account by hitting on the client's girlfriend. While stuck outside in the rain, he spots a woman with a yellow umbrella, who takes him away before he passes out.
He awakens in an isolated, locked hotel room and finds that he is being held prisoner. His captors provide him with basic hygiene items and meager portions of processed food and vitamin pills, along with a pint of vodka with every meal to prevent withdrawal, but do not provide reason for his imprisonment. Through a news bulletin on the TV in the room, Joe learns that his ex-wife Donna has been brutally raped and murdered, and he is the prime suspect. He also learns that his infant daughter Mia has been adopted.
Joe tries to commit suicide, but his mysterious captors save his life. Joe starts writing Mia letters, gives up drinking, and spends the next 20 years planning his revenge. He gets in shape, becomes a skilled boxer by watching televised matches, and compiles a list of everyone who might be responsible for his imprisonment.
In 2013, Joe watches an adult Mia being interviewed by a TV show called Mysteries of Crime, and claiming she could try to forgive him if he returns. Suddenly, he is drugged and awakes in a trunk in a field, with money and a cell phone. He spots the woman with the yellow umbrella and chases after her. He does not find her but violently assaults several high school students in his way. He arrives at a nearby clinic where he meets Marie Sebastian (Elizabeth Olsen), a nurse who offers to help him. Joe refuses help but takes her card.
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